School Notes:

Waldorf education balances artistic, academic and practical work
educating the whole child - hand and heart as well as mind. Its
innovative methodology and developmentally-oriented curriculum,
permeated with the arts, address the child's changing consciousness
as it unfolds, stage by stage. Imagination and creativity are
cultivated as well as cognitive growth and a sense of
responsibility for the earth and its inhabitants. Under the warm
and active instruction of their teachers, children are provided
with a creative and nurturing environment in which to develop, grow
and learn. Developed by Rudolf Steiner in 1919, Waldorf education
is based on a developmental approach that addresses the needs of
the growing child and maturing adolescent. Waldorf teachers strive
to transform education into an art that educates the whole
child.

School Reviews

1 year ago

I highly recommend this school to anyone with kids or grandkids going into preschool to 8th grade in Davis. I homeschooled my kids for the first 10 years of their lives and then, needing something different for the kids, we placed them in Davis Waldorf School which happened to be our neighborhood, though not public, school. The shift from homeschooling to private school, though difficult because my kids had never attended a formal school before, was made so much gentler and easier for our family due to the family like atmosphere of the Waldorf school. I love so many things about this school, it is difficult to pick just a few things to talk about. There is the community and staff who are loving and supportive of the kids and their families, it is the classmates who become like siblings as they transition from grade to grade together, the special ceremonies for the transitions to new seasons, new grades, new developmental levels, and more. It is the way the school keeps the kids well versed in the arts and music and it is the continuation of those relationships developed at the school after graduation. It is the very special teachers who get to know their students so well having taught them for multiple years and treat the kids with respect, individuality, and developmentally appropriate tasks. Our family would choose Davis Waldorf School again in a heartbeat!

- Posted by Parent

1 year ago

We have had nothing but a positive experience for our two children who are now 11 and 13. My children have been through the grades here and are testing very well compared to their public school friends. They are confident, well rounded and compassionate. The Davis Waldorf school has exceeded our families expectations!

- Posted by Parent

1 year ago

Our oldest daughter began at Davis Waldorf School in second grade. At the time she was furious with us for transferring her from her old school without her input. However, within weeks, the child who resisted learning, reading, and routines, grew engaged and even enthusiastic in her schooling. We stopped hearing "I don''t want to go to school." That was six years ago, and my husband and I have never regretted the financial or time investment. We now have three children at DWS (7th, 4th, and 1st grade as of the 2011-12 school year), and the school has fitted each of them in very different ways.
While some of the traditions or requests (such as limited to no media) often feel strange and even restrictive at first, we''ve found that there always seems to be valid reasoning behind them. The school functions like a large and welcoming family, and while (as with any family or community) there may be occasional frictions, we''ve never felt anything other than accepted and embraced.
We''ve found the teachers and administration to be open to communication and remarkably understanding of the unique personalities and quirks of our children. The curriculum is challenging enough to keep our intellectually gifted and skeptical teenager motivated while being paced perfectly for our perfectionist middle-schooler and social butterfly youngest.
Waldorf education may not be for everybody, but at Davis Waldorf School, I have found most of the children to be confident, at ease with adults, able to focus on problem solving, and remarkably tolerant of the quirks and individuality of their peers. In a cookie-cutter world, these kids are taught academics and life skills through the unique beauty of art, music, and movement.

- Posted by Parent

1 year ago

Our family loves the Davis Waldorf School. Our kindergarten-aged daughter is in her third year here, and has had consistently loving care in a structured play-based program. What we love about the Davis Waldorf School is that we feel we have real partners in raising our child. Our daughter has had structured time doing developmentally appropriate projects and crafts -- finger knitting, woodworking, cider-pressing, sewing, drawing and embroidery in kindergarten. As she has gotten older, the projects increase with her skill. She has also learned a lot of practical skills, folding laundry, putting things away, baking, sweeping, setting tables. Built into the day are ways for her to learn self-control, from things at circle time to the 3-minute "quiet sand" at the beginning of meals and snacktime. There is a lot of open-ended playtime in a beautiful garden and gentle classrooms. I feel totally safe leaving my child in the hands of such loving teachers and a loving program. One last thing, the early childhood classrooms are mixed-age as is the aftercare. I love that my daughter has learned to play with older and younger children over the years.

- Posted by Parent

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